RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication” and is a means for delivering regularly updated information over the web. The information that comes to you is called a “feed.” An RSS document (which is called a "feed" or "web feed" or "channel") contains either a summary of content from an associated web site or the full text. In other words, the information you want comes to you instead of you looking for it. Use a reader to keep track of the blogs you subscribe to. New posts will automatically be fed to your reader - you won't have to visit each individual blog to find out if there's anything new. Toolbar buttons are available for just about any browser to quickly add blogs to your reader.
How Do I Find RSS Feeds?
One of the most common symbols for an RSS feed is an orange icon that looks like this:
150px-Feed-icon.svg.png
You can often find this next to the URL in the location box on your browser or in one of the sidebars on a web page. Most often if you click on that icon, you'll get directions for subscribing. You may also see something like this:
39.gif
Many web pages have RSS feeds available. So do most electronic journals, online databases, e-newsletters, newspapers, photosharing sites, wikis, social bookmarking tools, podcasts, online calendars and task management tools, online communities and threaded-discussions. Most blogs have an RSS feed. (Even if it isn't easily identified, try entering the URL of the blog in your reader. If there is a feed, it may recognize it. Bloglines does.) You can also search Bloglines to find feeds of interest and subscribe to them.
What is an RSS Aggregator?
An RSS aggregator is a fancy way of saying, ”An online place that collects all of your favorite stuff and dumps it in one place.” How to Find a Feed, any Feed--Google your favorite web site and look for the tell-tale RSS feed symbol
external image rss01.0.jpg
(increasingly the symbol for RSS). Although often in orange, the feed symbol does come in other shades. Sometimes it says XML. And, still other times there will simply be a link called "RSS Feeds." However it is presented, it's a link to a feed and if you want to get that feed into your Bloglines account, look for the symbol or acronym and follow it. Here are some popular RSS aggregators (feed readers) in each category.
You can use RSS feeds and an aggregator to keep up to date with your blogs, world and local news, family photostreams, podcasts, weather forecasts, lottery results, product price changes and sales, new publications from your favorite authors or publishers, social bookmarks, professional association news, photos--almost anything you can find on the web! By using RSS feeds, you won't have to check each of them each day. Instead, when something new is added, it will appear in your reader. RSS feeds may make up a major portion of your personal learning network. There are hundreds of electronic journals with RSS feeds. By subscribing, you'll know whenever anything new is posted or published. LM_Net posted a hit of favorite RSS feeds submited by school library media specialists.
Keep Students and Teachers Up-to-Date
You can integrate RSS feeds into your school library media website. If you have pages just for teachers, include feeds that will interest them. Using RSS to Add Currency to a Library Website is a screencast that shows how a medical library is using RSS feeds as well as other examples of using RSS. See the RSS etc. Ideas to Sharepage for examples of how school library media centers are using RSS feeds to keep their webpages fresh and up-to-date. That will keep users coming back! Think of RSS feeds as free content for your web pages. You can include word of the day feeds, news of the day feeds, pet of the day, quote of the day, this day in history and more. Infoplease has a nice selection of RSS feeds for you to use--with directions! Don't forget to integrate appropriate RSS feeds from your public library! Once you add them to your webpage, you can forget them They will update themselves automatically! You can also teach students and teachers how to locate and use RSS feeds. RSS is all about managing information, so it fits into the job description! They will thank you for it! Help your principal set up a feed reader and locate some good feeds for administrators. It will be a real time-saver and professional development tool for him/her.
See RSS and Education for more ideas for using RSS feeds. You can create different looks and/or combine multiple feeds into one with a tool like FeedRoll or Feed Digest.
For a step-by-step guide to using Google Reader, click here.
RSS Challenge
Go to your gmail account and click on "More" and then "Reader"
Go into your blog, click on layout, click on the blog widget you added yesterday to edit, and add these blogs to your blog by choosing the 'add through Google Reader" option! Not required, but will be counted as extra credit.
| RSS Feeds & News Aggregators | What is RSS? | How Do I Find RSS Feeds? | What is an RSS Aggregator? | How Are Library Media Specialists Using RSS? | RSS Challenge | EXTRA CREDIT: |RSS Feeds & News Aggregators
What is RSS?
RSS is a way of organizing information.RSS stands for “Really Simple Syndication” and is a means for delivering regularly updated information over the web. The information that comes to you is called a “feed.” An RSS document (which is called a "feed" or "web feed" or "channel") contains either a summary of content from an associated web site or the full text. In other words, the information you want comes to you instead of you looking for it. Use a reader to keep track of the blogs you subscribe to. New posts will automatically be fed to your reader - you won't have to visit each individual blog to find out if there's anything new. Toolbar buttons are available for just about any browser to quickly add blogs to your reader.
How Do I Find RSS Feeds?
One of the most common symbols for an RSS feed is an orange icon that looks like this:Many web pages have RSS feeds available. So do most electronic journals, online databases, e-newsletters, newspapers, photosharing sites, wikis, social bookmarking tools, podcasts, online calendars and task management tools, online communities and threaded-discussions. Most blogs have an RSS feed. (Even if it isn't easily identified, try entering the URL of the blog in your reader. If there is a feed, it may recognize it. Bloglines does.) You can also search Bloglines to find feeds of interest and subscribe to them.
What is an RSS Aggregator?
An RSS aggregator is a fancy way of saying, ”An online place that collects all of your favorite stuff and dumps it in one place.”
How to Find a Feed, any Feed--Google your favorite web site and look for the tell-tale RSS feed symbol
Here are some popular RSS aggregators (feed readers) in each category.
Popular RSS Aggregators
Web-Based RSS ReadersHow Are Library Media Specialists Using RSS?
- Keep Up to Date Professionally and Personally
You can use RSS feeds and an aggregator to keep up to date with your blogs, world and local news, family photostreams, podcasts, weather forecasts, lottery results, product price changes and sales, new publications from your favorite authors or publishers, social bookmarks, professional association news, photos--almost anything you can find on the web! By using RSS feeds, you won't have to check each of them each day. Instead, when something new is added, it will appear in your reader. RSS feeds may make up a major portion of your personal learning network. There are hundreds of electronic journals with RSS feeds. By subscribing, you'll know whenever anything new is posted or published. LM_Net posted a hit of favorite RSS feeds submited by school library media specialists.- Keep Students and Teachers Up-to-Date
You can integrate RSS feeds into your school library media website. If you have pages just for teachers, include feeds that will interest them. Using RSS to Add Currency to a Library Website is a screencast that shows how a medical library is using RSS feeds as well as other examples of using RSS. See the RSS etc. Ideas to Share page for examples of how school library media centers are using RSS feeds to keep their webpages fresh and up-to-date. That will keep users coming back! Think of RSS feeds as free content for your web pages. You can include word of the day feeds, news of the day feeds, pet of the day, quote of the day, this day in history and more. Infoplease has a nice selection of RSS feeds for you to use--with directions! Don't forget to integrate appropriate RSS feeds from your public library! Once you add them to your webpage, you can forget them They will update themselves automatically!You can also teach students and teachers how to locate and use RSS feeds. RSS is all about managing information, so it fits into the job description! They will thank you for it!
Help your principal set up a feed reader and locate some good feeds for administrators. It will be a real time-saver and professional development tool for him/her.
See RSS and Education for more ideas for using RSS feeds.
You can create different looks and/or combine multiple feeds into one with a tool like FeedRoll or Feed Digest.
For a step-by-step guide to using Google Reader, click here.
RSS Challenge
EXTRA CREDIT:
Go into your blog, click on layout, click on the blog widget you added yesterday to edit, and add these blogs to your blog by choosing the 'add through Google Reader" option! Not required, but will be counted as extra credit.